'Food deserts' compound obesity issue

11:36 PM,
Mar. 19, 2011

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More than two-thirds of Mississippi's counties - including Hinds, Madison and Rankin - contain "food deserts," where fresh fruits and vegetables are hard to find.

And experts say that helps perpetuate obesity in a state that is the fattest in the nation.

"There are food deserts all over the state," said Sandra Shelson, executive director for the Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi. "It takes some people living in the Mississippi Delta 20 minutes to get to a grocery store." ...